A Pemberton author’s tale about a forlorn pup, Tippet: The Whippet of the North, is set to hit bookshelves this year after a successful fundraising campaign. Kelsey Bareham is already a well-known name in the world of children’s literature. Her debut, self-published book, Wally Learns to Ski, is a fan favourite in Whistler and has sold between 4,000 and 5,000 copies to date. She penned the popular story when she was just 16-years-old, and published right before the Olympics came to town.
Earlier this year, Bareham decided it was time to get her second book onto shelves. The new book outlines the plight of Tippet, a dog unceremoniously dumped at a farm and feed in the north. The pup adapts to a climate he was not built for, and makes some friends along the way. A fun little twist ensures Tippet’s tale will capture the attention of kids and parents alike. The main characters are loosely based on Bareham’s own parents, she said.
Bareham faced the age-old artist’s battle between keeping control over her project and getting it out to as many people as possible.
“It wasn’t in my budget to print it again,” she said. “I had tried when I had first written Tippet. I got an agent from New York. She wanted to put it onto lots of different notable desks. I got feedback from all the big publishers. She had pitched it for about a year. She thought it was too long, so she cut the book in half. I didn’t really didn’t want to do that but she was the professional. I was just really excited to have an agent. It didn’t really do the story justice. I am pretty proud of it.”
Going with a big publishing house could have sacrificed exactly what makes Tippet so special. The cool rhyming scheme and beautiful, hand-painted illustrations would have been scrapped.
“The dream is to be published by the big publishers,” said Bareham. “I was willing to sacrifice the integrity of my art if it meant I was going to get published by one of the big publishing houses. I’m quite glad now. They also want to pair you up with an illustrator. They are not as interested in people that do both. I appreciate the way I have full creative control with it. It gives me a lot more opportunity to say what I want to say, to present it the way I had it in my mind.”
Getting a 10X10, 32-page book to print costs $10,000. The innovative author set up a Kickstarter campaign to get the project off the ground, and so far 127 backers have pledged towards her goal. The book was picked up by Amazon and Kindle, and will also be available in print at Whistler’s Armchair Books.
Bareham said she wanted to keep the production as local as she could.
“I wanted to keep it in Canada, because I thought it would be good to keep the industry local,” she said. “I can appreciate buying locally. It’s really important. Sarah from Armchair Books also pledged $1,000 to the Kickstarter campaign to get the book started.”
The local author was blown away by support from the community.
“I am humbled and inspired by the generosity of our community in helping artists achieve their dreams,” she said.
“I couldn’t have made the first print happen without the support of the community, and I am awed by the kindness and enthusiasm I’ve received about the project.”
Tippet: The Whippet of the North’s Kickstarter campaign runs until Jan 12.
